For those of you who didn’t win a copy of my Andrea Penrose Regency-set mystery in the previous Goodreads giveaway, I have great news! Kensington, the publisher of my new Regency-set mystery series, is running anewspecial giveawayon Goodreads ofMURDER ON BLACK SWAN LANE!
Just clickhereby July 6thto enter.

(And while you’re on the contest page, please take a moment to click on the button to follow my Goodreads author page in order to receive news on future special offers and giveaways!)

(p.s. The Literary Cat AND the Book Bear have informed me that they are giving the book a paws-up.)

I’m excited to announce that MURDER ON BLACK SWAN LANE, the first book in my new Regency-set historical mystery series, written under my Andrea Penrose nom de plume, is now available in bookstores and online!

(A pause as I hit the play button for Handel’s Music for Royal Fireworks!)

I’ll be posting more during the upcoming weeks about the inspiration behind the series, as well as a fun look at how the cover was created . . .

But for now, I’ll just dish on why I find the Regency such a fabulously interesting time and place. It was a world aswirl in silks, seduction and the intrigue of the Napoleonic Wars. Radical new ideas were clashing with the conventional thinking of the past. Science and technology were changing the world with frightening speed. As a result, people were challenging and changing the fundamentals of their society.

In so many ways, it was the birth of the modern world, and for me, its challenges, its characters and its conflicts have such relevance to our own times. (And hey, who can resist men in breeches and boots!)

In MURDER ON BLACK SWAN LANE, the first book in my new series, which comes out in July of this year, I’ve sought to create two lead characters who embody the intellectual curiosity—and gritty courage—of the times. They are opposites: a brooding aristocrat whose extraordinary mind runs on the rational new principles of scientific inquiry, paired with a struggling artist whose innate cleverness and intuition are the keys to her survival. Forced to work together, the Earl of Wrexford and Charlotte Sloane find they make a formidable team, despite their differences. (Ah, but as science tells us, opposites often attract!)

They’ll be setting off on some devilishly daunting adventures. So lace up your corsets, tweak the tails of your cravat and get ready to enter a world of glittering ballrooms, dangerous alleyways and deadly intrigues . . .

Please be sure to follow my Andrea Penrose author page on Goodreads in order to receive special offers and promotions, including giveaways of MURDER ON BLACK SWAN LANE from my publisher.

My Andrea Penrose Regency Mysteries are now available in special new e-book editions

Mystery, murder and mayhem—with a dash of romance
. . . and chocolate!

Still wearing my Andrea Penrose plumed shako, I’m delighted to annnounce that I’ve released spiffy new e-book editions of The Lady Arianna Regency Mystery series—with special new covers and a special new low price!

“Andrea Penrose bursts into the world of historical mysteries with a book that will delight readers….I can’t wait to get my hands on the next installment!” -Tasha Alexander, author of “Dangerous to Know”

“A mouthwatering combination of suspense and chocolate!” -Lauren Willig, author of “The Secret History of the Pink Carnation”

“A mysterious lady, bent on revenge, and a mystery-solving Lord will take you on a thrilling ride through Regency England in this smashing debut novel.” -Victoria Thompson, author of “Murder on Sisters’ Row“

If you enjoy a strong, clever heroine matched with a dashingly brooding hero, I hope you’ll give them a try!

Now, on to more Regency goodies . . .

Have you ever wondered where authors get the inspiration for their heroes and heroines? Well, I have an art background, so I’m a very visual person and love to look at historical paintings to help me picture my characters. (This is Lord Granville Leveson-Gower above on the left, who was called the most handsome man in England. He’s pretty dishy, isn’t he? But I have a feeling he would be have been quite a handful in more ways than one!) You can see other seductive men and alluring women on my Pinterest boards.